


The Butterfly Effect

by LightNS



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series), Teen Titans (Comics), Teen Titans - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Romance, bbrae - Freeform, bbxrae - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-14
Updated: 2019-07-31
Packaged: 2019-11-18 01:56:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18110891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LightNS/pseuds/LightNS
Summary: Two strangers, one elevator, several coincidences—one outcome. BBRae AURated for semi-sexually explicit content and future topics of depression and suicide.





	1. Chapter 1

Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ

> _“It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.”_
> 
> Chaos Theory

Every event since the dawn of creation, the explosion that spawned the milky ribbon of shimmering specks in Earth's night skies 13.6 billion years ago, the fusion of dust and gas 4.6 billion years ago that produced the blazing giant that nurtures the planets of our solar system, the collision of small particles bound by the force of gravity that created our mother Earth 4.54 billion years ago, the first drop of water that sparked the existence of life in this planet thousands of centuries ago—every event, no matter the magnitude, coincided to devise a complex network of effects that led to this precise second.

And Raven wasn't exactly very grateful about that at the moment.

First, she had awoken that morning sprawled out on Kory's couch with the worst (and first) hangover she'd ever had after her so-called friends had convinced her to attend a bar with them the previous day to "mend her broken heart" after he who shall not be named had shown up at her footstep to ask for her hand in marriage and reopened an already healed wound. Needless to say, it wasn't the most rational decision Raven had taken.

Then, after the initial shock of her situation, she had scrambled out of Kory's apartment without so much of a warning (considering all of her friends were slouched in odd places of the room snoring and drooling all over themselves) to catch the bus to her job.

Alas, she had spent the bus ride to Wayne Enterprise Headquarters sandwiched between an overweight guy who smelled faintly like cigarettes and a creepy forty-year-old man who continuously tried to place his palm on Raven's thigh.

When she had finally arrived at her destination, she had hurried into the third elevator to the right of the main reception area (an odd move considering she _always_ took the stairs) precisely seven minutes after her shift was supposed to begin. Any second later and the messy blonde with the oh-so-typical troublemaker grin plastered on his expression would not have been able to stick his arm inside the elevator doors to prevent them from closing.

Lastly, had it not been for the recent, on-going maintenance issues for all the elevators in the building, perhaps the machine wouldn't have malfunctioned and abruptly frozen mid-way to the thirty-sixth floor of the building.

And now she was here—suffering from an intense headache and thoroughly famished considering she hadn't had breakfast this morning nor dinner the previous night, not to mention plopped down in front of an irritating guy who kept trying to start a conversation with her.

Raven admired her life, she really did, but at the moment, life wasn't being exactly generous to her.

"Can I at least know your name?" the aggravating idiot insisted. "I'm Gar."

She massaged the bridge of her nose gently in an attempt to soothe the aching inside her skull. "Raven," she deadpanned.

"Are, uh… are you okay?" he stammered sheepishly. She internally smiled, feeling glad that her ability to intimidate people could also affect morons like him. Alright, so perhaps she was being too cruel in her judgment of him, but to her defense, the pounding in her head prevented her from making any kind of reasonable thinking at the moment.

"No, I'm not," she gritted her teeth. "But I'd be more than fine if you'd just shut up."

He stayed silent for a few minutes, and just when she began to believe that he may have miraculously teleported out of her plane of existence, he spoke, "How long do you think we'll be in here?"

"I don't know," she snarled.

"I mean, they have to know we're stuck in here right? I really wish I hadn't forgotten my phone in my car… Are you sure your phone is completely dead?" he asked for the third time.

Raven scrunched up her eyebrows but managed to keep her voice calm, "I already told you no. If my phone were to somehow magically gain charge and turn on or I find a charger and an outlet magically appears next to me, you would be the first one to know."

"Why couldn't they at least bother to fix their emergency call button?" he loudly complained, his voice resonating like an echo chamber inside her head more than it should have. Why did he have to be  _so fucking irritating_?

Raven frowned, her fingers now massaging her forehead, "I don't know. Maybe it's because they didn't bother fixing the elevator at all," she retorted.

"So, uh, why are you here?" he asked awkwardly, his voice seemingly gaining a few octaves.

"Why do you think?" she snapped. "I'm here for work. Where I should have been twenty-five minutes ago."

"Oh… I'm here to visit a friend," he unnecessarily shared.

"Nice to know," she uttered sarcastically.

"So… How are you?" he questioned while toying around with his keychain. Raven swore he could pass off as a child if it wasn't for his appearance. She felt like a mother stuck inside a car during a road trip with a toddler continuously asking her if they were there yet.

"You already asked that," she grumbled.

"Well, you didn't answer…" he replied with a snicker that made her blood boil. She really had to control her temper before she exploded on him. Sure, he was thoroughly annoying, but even he didn't deserve  _that_. "So I thought I'd ask again."

"How's that going for you so far?" she bumped the back of her head against the wall and shut her eyes tightly.

He shrugged before answering, "You haven't answered yet so… not good?"

"And what do you think that means..?" she continued.

"Uh…" he furrowed his eyebrows at her. "... That you don't want to answer?"

"Bingo."

"Why not?" he tilted his head.

She arched an eyebrow, "What?"

"Why don't you want to answer?" he asked.

Raven finally opened her eyes and regarded him with a blank expression, "God, could you be any more annoying?" she whispered under her breath, though she didn't answer his question.

"You know, you'd look so much prettier if you smiled or if you acted just a little nicer…" he blurted out.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she scowled at him.

He raised his hands up in defense and grinned like an idiot, "No offense, really. You're  _really_ pretty. But you'd be prettier if you smiled and… adjusted your attitude a bit," he confessed.

"Excuse me?" she sent him a piercing glare that made him shift in his seat. She hoped it was a sign of fear. "I don't need attitude lessons from someone like you," she retorted.

He looked taken aback, and he opened his mouth to respond but seemingly thought best of it. Instead, he sat back and avoided her gaze. Raven considered getting him to shut his mouth a sign of success.

After fifteen more minutes, he appeared to finally snap. He groaned loudly and jumped to his feet. "Is no one really fucking aware of the fact that we're in here!?" he slammed his hands against the wall, causing the elevator to rattle.

"Keep that up and you'll make things worse," Raven rolled her eyes.

"We really have to get out of here," he ran a hand through his messy locks and paced around the small space, otherwise aggravating Raven further. She had never before been more desperate to gain the ability to teleport.

"You're not going to accomplish anything by panicking," she noted.

He stopped in his place and crossed his arms, his nice-guy act finally faltering, "Well I'm trying to think of something! Meanwhile, you're sitting there acting like a total bitch!"

"That's because you were being an annoying moron," she countered.

"Ugh!" he let out a frustrated howl and placed his palms against the wall while staring down at the ground, most likely to calm down. They really had to get out of there before they killed each other.

Then, he raised his head abruptly as if a light bulb had switched on above his head. "Wait a second! Doesn't this elevator have-" he reached his hand up and gently pressed on the ceiling tiles in the elevator until he found a loose one. "Ah ha!" he uttered like he was a total genius. Raven hoped he wasn't considering what she was thinking.

"Get on my shoulders!" he turned to her and offered a hand.

Raven only gaped at him, "Excuse me?" she questioned with an arched eyebrow.

"Get on my shoulders and get out through the ceiling and see if you can find a way to get us out of here. I've seen it happen in movies hundreds of times!" he insisted.

"You do realize we're not in a movie?" Raven scoffed.

"Come on Rae! Chill out and follow my lead," he gave her that stupid grin of his.

She narrowed her eyes, "My name is _Raven_ , and I'd rather not," she scorned.

"Alright, _Raven_ ," he mocked before grabbing her wrists forcefully and pulling her up. A tumult of butterflies erupted inside her gut when she realized their faces were only a few centimeters apart, and for some reason, her eyes took a strange interest upon his plump rosy lips. She only snapped out of her trance when his face flushed, and he quickly stepped back with a nervous chuckle. Why the hell was she staring at his lips? And why the hell was she getting butterflies in her stomach because of it?

"Um, sorry…" his eyes wandered everywhere but her. "What was I-oh!" His eyes widened comically. "Like I was saying," he cleared his throat in an attempt to lessen the awkwardness in the elevator. "We don't have many other options and so far, there's no sign that they even know we're in here. So, I don't know about you, but I have a lot of things to do, and I'd prefer to _not_ spend the rest of my day stuck inside an elevator."

Though he had a point, there was no way Raven was going to agree with his ludicrous plan. She crossed her arms and scrutinized his expression carefully, searching for any sign that he could be joking about it. She found that he wasn't. And that he was a bigger idiot than she had originally guessed.

"No," Raven declared in a flat tone. "Your plan is utterly-"

She was interrupted by a faint voice above them calling out, "Is anybody in there?"

"Vic!? Is that you!?" the idiot before her shouted, and her headache suddenly returned at full force. "We're in here!"

"Green bean? What are you doing in there? Who's with you?" the male voice exclaimed.

The guy's face turned tomato-red at the nickname, and Raven contained a snicker. "Uh, Raven's her name. We've been trapped in here for almost an hour now!" he replied.

"Oh! Well, I got bad news and good news for you," he called. "The good news is you're getting out. The bad news is the elevator is stuck between floors so we can't force open the doors for you, and the maintenance workers have to work from the inside to get it moving again. Luckily, there's a removable tile in the ceiling above you. If you just raise it, you can crawl out and then get out through here."

Raven's stomach fell as she noted the cocky grin that undoubtedly screamed 'I told you so.' She didn't dare to comment on it, and instead disguised her displeasure, and admittedly embarrassment, behind a scowl. "Just kneel down," she muttered, her expression daring him to boast about it.

He got on his knees and grasped the front of her ankles when she positioned herself on his shoulders. She tried to ignore the undoubtedly red coloring of her face as she became aware of just how short her pencil skirt really was. He stood up, and she pushed the tile up to reveal the silhouette of a head poking out from the propped open elevator doors of the floor above them. Her hands grasped the sides of the elevator roof, and she pulled herself up. Then, she peeked below her where the guy was avoiding her eyes while scratching the back of his neck nervously. She narrowed her eyes but reached down to offer a hand. He grasped it firmly.

"Ready? One, two, three-" he forced out as she pulled him up with all of her strength, and he used the rails on the side of the elevator to prop himself up and climb out of the elevator.

"Thanks…" he whispered as he raised his gaze and locked eyes with her own—forest green to dark indigo. Her breath hitched when she caught a whiff of the minty aroma of his mouth, and she attempted to reply with a 'you're welcome,' but she found that her mouth was too dry to utter the words. Her eyes traced the outline of his lips carefully, and she noticed how he did the same. They found the distance between them shrinking little by little, their lips magnetizing each other before-

"Ahem," the man above them interrupted.

The two jerked away from each other, and their eyes took an abrupt interest on everything but each other.

"I thought you guys would be more eager to get out of there…" the man above them smirked. "Come on, I can help you out," he offered a hand.

The guy—she supposed she should start referring to him as Gar, but that made it sound like they were acquaintances (or dare she say friends), and considering she was almost out of this predicament, she'd rather him be out of her hair as soon as possible—took a step back and signaled for her to go first. Raven took the burly man's large hand and crawled out. Gar followed shortly behind her.

She glanced down and dusted her skirt, though it was really just an excuse to avoid peeking at him. Her face was barely cooling off, and she'd rather it _not_ heat up again.

"Um, I guess this is where we part ways?" he asked her awkwardly. Raven glanced at him and nodded.

"So, uh, farewell?" he strode forwards with his hands buried inside his pockets. "I… um, hope I see you again soon?" he squeaked.

Before she could gain enough sense to stop herself, she responded, "Perhaps," with a faint smile. To make things even worse, she completely froze up like a deer in the headlights the moment he removed his right hand from his pocket and planted a gentle kiss on the back of her hand, his gaze studying her intently as if he were trying to memorize her appearance. Her eyes grew as wide as saucers, and she heard dozens of different alarms blaring inside her head. This was bad. This was _really bad_.

She bit her lip and retreated, her feet seemingly on autopilot as she hurried down an unfamiliar hallway. What the hell had just happened? Why the hell was she freaking out about it?

She was Raven for God's sake! The impassive, stoic, impenetrable girl who did not flirt or let herself be wooed by unfamiliar guys under _any_ circumstances. Yet here she was getting weak-kneed over some idiot she'd been stuck in an elevator with for almost an hour. An idiot who she found absolutely aggravating, mind you. What the hell was wrong with her!?

Raven sighed and clutched her forehead, her headache coming back at full force. God, that girl's night out had been a really fucking stupid idea. Why had she let herself be convinced? If she had just stayed home and woken up early, abiding by her normal routine, none of this would have happened. She was really starting to lose it.

Her heels clicked against the marble floor rhythmically, and she suddenly found herself stopping. She huffed out in annoyance when she realized she'd been roaming the hallways with no remote idea where she was headed to. She decided to take the stairs for the remaining two floors until she finally reached Dick's office, a total of fifty-six minutes late.

Raven opened the door to his office and noticed he was pacing around talking frantically on the phone. When he noticed her, his face shifted from panicked to puzzled to relieved within the span of five seconds.

"Raven!" he exclaimed while hanging up the phone. "Where the hell have you been!? I've been calling everyone to ask for you! You're  _never_ late! Kory said she woke up and you were already gone, but when you didn't arrive after half an hour, I started to worry. You weren't answering your phone, and after forty-five minutes I finally started making calls to see if anyone knew where you were! Do you have any idea how worried I was!?"

"Control yourself, Richard, I was stuck in the elevator this whole time," Raven sighed and crossed her arms.

"For an hour!?" he exclaimed.

"Yes, if you'd just bother to tell your guys to fix the elevators for once, we wouldn't have had this complication," she rebutted.

Dick finally shut his mouth, "Alright. You have a point, let's just forget this. Next time you're late, mind giving me a call?"

"My phone was dead, but I'll make sure it doesn't happen again," she nodded.

With that, they went on with their respective jobs, Raven managing important business emails and taking phone calls while Dick attended his daily meetings to analyze the progress of the company. Needless to say, Raven wasn't properly focused on her job considering a certain emerald-eyed idiot seemingly invaded her thoughts.

God, she really had to get a grip on herself before things got bad. The good news was, she wasn't planning on running into him ever again. 

* * *

**A/N: I've been working on this story for a long while now, so no, I did not postpone Glass. I do want to have a little fun releasing these chapters so... I've decided that you guys might have to work a little if you want to see this story continued. That is, if you want it to be continued, of course. We're going to have a fun game of Teen Titans trivia every chapter and if someone guesses correctly I will update the next chapter in the coming days. So if it takes months for the correct answer to come through, then it'll probably take months for the next update. I will be nice, though, if in a few weeks you still haven't figured it out (which I doubt), I'll edit this chapter with a hint. Let the games begin!**

**We're going to start off easy...**

**Question**  
**Beast Boy once "[dug] around in someone's intestines" for Raven's sake (romantic, huh?)  
Can you name the  _comic Issue and Volume_  when this took place?**

 **Answer  
** **?**

 


	2. Chapter 2

Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ

" _A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it."_

Jean de La Fontaine

"Raven? Are you alright?" Kory asked through furrowed eyebrows, her voice tainted with concern.

It had been a week since her encounter with Gar, and Raven felt both relieved and disappointed about it. For some reason, she found herself daydreaming about him at random intervals during her daily routine. She often didn't realize it until someone snapped her back into reality—and every time felt a little more mortifying than the last. Why the hell was she daydreaming about a stranger she'd barely interacted with? A stranger who was both incredibly irritating and foolish. And attractive.

_NO!_  Her eyes widened when the thought invaded her mind. She bumped her hand into her forehead to knock some sense into herself. Perhaps she'd gone long enough without a proper date or physical affection, but Raven really needed to get her emotions in control. They were beginning to affect her performance at work. She'd probably never see the stranger again after all. She hoped she never did, though a little voice inside her head thought otherwise.

They sat at a secluded booth inside a coffee shop eating lunch. Kory loved having their 'girl talks' every other Tuesday, and the only way Raven conformed was if they had them at places she enjoyed. Naturally, she chose coffee shops because of the peaceful and quiet ambiance they all shared. Today, it was an underrated, small (yet homey) coffee shop located only a few blocks west from her workplace called  _Booked Week Café_  and locally known for their abundant amount of teas for customer selection and their built-in bookstore, hence the name. The place was mostly desolate save for the two young women, an elderly woman a few tables away, and the lanky teenage worker manning the cash register.

"Raven?" Kory repeated, finally gaining her attention.

She muttered an unintelligible, "Huh?"

"Are you alright? You seem distracted. Would you like to talk about it..?" she questioned, her voice soft to make sure Raven knew she wasn't trying to pry.

Raven clutched the handle of her coffee cup tightly before replying, "... Not really, Kory."

"Oh," Kory's eyes trailed down with disappointment. "Very well then, friend. Would you like to talk about something else?"

Raven blew on her cup before taking a tiny sip of her herbal tea. The liquid traveled through her mouth and down the esophagus, sending a pleasant sense of warmth throughout her body.  _Ah, always refreshing_ , she smiled. She opened her eyes and observed Kory attentively. She seemed a bit restless for an odd reason… "Why don't we talk about Dick?"

The girl visibly bounced in her seat and beamed cheerfully.  _Bingo_. "Oh, he has been most wonderful recently! He has invited me on a date this Friday to an extremely exclusive restaurant in the northern sector!" she squealed.

"... That actually sounds really expensive. He must be trying to make your night special… Do you think..?" Raven gave her a look, and she could tell Kory understood.

Her face flushed, and she trailed her finger around the rim of her coffee cup while avoiding Raven's curious stare, "I am not sure, exactly. It is not an anniversary or a special occasion as far as I am aware… So, it is possible that…" her voice trailed off.

Raven tilted her head before asking, "Would you say yes?"

"Of course I would!" Kory didn't hesitate on her response, and she regarded Raven with a somewhat offended expression as if she was shocked that Raven would even have to ask that. "We have been together for three years now… And I truly believe Richard is my soulmate. I... " she stammered. "I wish to spend the rest of my life with him by my side."

Raven smiled at her, "I'm glad, Kory. Dick is a great guy, and I really think you two are meant for each other."

Kory looked pleased with her assumption, and they remained in a comfortable silence for a few minutes. Then, abruptly, Kory curiously inquired, "What about you, Raven?"

"What about me?" Raven looked taken aback, though she had a feeling she knew where her question was headed. And she didn't like it.

"Have you met anyone special recently..? Perhaps a suitor who fits your needs… Someone to help you get over…" Kory suddenly stopped, slapping a hand over her mouth as if she were shocked by her own words.

Raven's grip on the handle of her cup only tightened, and she avoided the girl's remorseful stare.

"I am sorry, friend. I did not mean-"

"It's fine. I have to get over him eventually, don't I?" Raven didn't mean for her tone to sound so utterly defeated, but it did, and Kory visibly saddened.

"I firmly believe that you will, friend. It will take time but…" she placed her hand above Raven's and sent her a kind smile. "You will find someone who loves you for who you are."

Raven only nodded, despite not really believing her friend's optimistic outlook. Kory had always been a glass-half-full kind of girl. Raven, on the other hand, had not. She had grown up in an environment that left little for her to hope for. Her father had been abusive to her and her mother. Then one day, Arella had vanished, leaving only an apologetic note to Raven where she assured her that she'd come back for her one day. That she'd save her from her father. That she'd give her the love and attention that she deserved.

The day never came, and since that moment, Raven had known she was a realist. Fortunately, during her eighteenth birthday, she finally escaped from her father's demonic influence, and she moved to San Francisco where she started a new life, where she met her best friends and overcame her fucked up past. And she was okay for once in her life.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Kory's phone suddenly blaring into life. Kory glanced at her apologetically, and Raven simply signaled for her to answer it. She stood up to give her friend some privacy and walked to the cashier to refill her now-empty cup.

"Herbal tea, please," she told the cashier. He nodded and ambled to the back to refill her cup.

Raven heard the wind chimes behind her clank delicately against each other (one of the unique things she enjoyed about the coffee shop was their doorbell). She felt the winter breeze caress the back of her legs as the newcomer stepped inside and the door shut. The footsteps stopped right behind her, and Raven assumed he/she thought she was standing in line.

"You can-" her jaw nearly dropped open when she recognized who he was.

"Raven," he grinned goofily at her.

She seemed to come to her senses, and she instantly cleared her throat in hopes of masking her momentary stupor. "Gar," she acknowledged.

"I thought I recognized you," he commented while burying his hands inside his pockets.

"How..?" Raven wasn't sure what to ask.

"I did tell you I'd see you again," he cockily replied.

Raven grimaced. She had forgotten how much of an irritating idiot he really was. And since when had he gained such a confident aura? Last time she'd checked, he had been tripping over his own shoelaces and stammering through his syllables during their short time (or dare she say long) trapped in the elevator together. "Unfortunately," she huffed.

"Aw, you know you wanted to see me again, Rae," he strolled forward, and Raven suddenly felt like she was trapped between him and the counter. Her hands wandered about aimlessly behind her as she stumbled backward until she gripped the surface's edge. Her face reddened, both in embarrassment and indignation. How did this guy manage to push her buttons so easily? And why the hell was she getting so flustered around him?

"I-" she choked on her words, her unemotional act faltering.

He chuckled softly, and his arms clung to either side of the counter behind her. His face was so close, and he pursed his lips, an action that she'd normally find creepy from the countless guys who attempted to flirt with her but that provoked a swirl of eager nerves within her stomach from him. His mouth was extremely alluring, practically inviting her to let her riled emotions loose and ravage him with ravenous kisses.

"Uh… Here's your tea…" an awkward squeak behind her reeled her back in, and she quickly pushed Gar back.

Raven turned with an undoubtedly red face and clumsily slapped a ten-dollar bill on the counter before snatching her cup nervously. Gar laughed quietly behind her, no doubt aware of the effect he had on her. She avoided eye contact with him. He shifted forwards and murmured a phrase that should have sounded completely innocent to her ears, yet it didn't. "I hope to see you again soon," the words released a heap of excited shivers throughout her body. Then, he turned to the cash register and started ordering something that Raven's hearing was unable to catch as her head felt like a helicopter spinning out of control in the sky.

She hurried to her seat in the back (and thankfully out of view) and sat down, barely managing to keep her tea from spilling. Kory was still distractedly talking in her phone and barely caught notice of her, giving Raven enough time to contemplate what had just occurred.

_What the hell was that?_

Raven felt like hyperventilating, but she contained herself as to not drag Kory's attention. Her mind felt like a disarray of dazed, distraught, maddened, and aroused emotions spiraling about frantically. She had never in her life been more stirred up by a guy than she was now.  _How in the name of-_

"Raven?" Kory waved a hand in front of her.

"What?" she asked quizzically.

Kory looked befuddled, "Are you okay? You went to get some tea, and you came back looking… agitated? Did something happen?"

"No," she croaked, cloaking her riled emotions behind her usual apathetic attitude, even though she was losing it inside. "Nothing happened. I just happened to run into someone unexpected." The best lie was always a half-lie.

"Oh… Was it… him?" Kory questioned with apprehensive eyes. Raven knew who she was referring to.

She shook her head and sipped her tea, "It was someone else."

"Okay," Kory dropped the subject when she realized Raven wasn't going to elaborate. "Perhaps we should head back to your workplace?"

Raven bit her lip nervously, glancing back at the cashier but finding it empty, "Perhaps we should."

* * *

**Date: Tuesday, March 19, 2019**

**A/N: Woo! I'm glad someone got the question right. I was worried no one would. The answer to last chapter's question was John's run of the** **Teen Titans Vol. 3, Issue#12. Friendly reminder that if you want me to announce you as the winner, make sure you write a name. This one was answered by a guest. They asked if using the internet is cheating. Nope! All is fair! In fact, I encourage the use of the wikis and forums out there. You learn a lot by just swiping through content and sometimes it encourages people to actually check out the comics! I know that's why I fell into this superhero rabbit hole. Taygon55 was also pretty close. He/she cited issue 5/6 of John's run.**

**So anyhow, in this issue, Garfield essentially turned into a parasitic worm and dived into Brother Blood's intestines to retrieve Raven's chakra. This was kind of the first hint of romance I ever noticed from these two as they had a really sweet talk afterward, and I squealed like crazy.**

**This question is going to be a little easier since this was somewhat of a short chapter.**

**Question**

**During the first few issues of _Titan's Volume 3_ ,  
** **Garfield visits Raven at her school "undercover" in the form of a _?_.**

**Answer**

**?**


	3. Chapter 3

> Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ
> 
> " _You can't run from your shadow. But you can invite it to dance."_
> 
> Tanya Geisler

Perched atop the concrete bench, he sat, his gaze intently fixed upon the gravestone a few feet before him. The field was silent—only the wind whistled its forlorn chant, and every so often, a raven croaked in the distance.

Garfield had forgotten how tranquil the ambiance of the graveyard made him feel. It was as if the world stopped every time, just to give him a moment to cope with the somber emotions buried in the trenches of his heart. The emotions he'd rarely display. Though he wore his heart on his sleeve, as many people told him, Garfield made sure  _that_  part of him—the beast hiding within his shadow—remained entrapped inside his mind.

"I met a girl a few weeks ago…" he started, pretending for a moment that his mother was sitting in front of him listening intently like she always used to do. "We met in an elevator," he chuckled to himself. "She has quite a temper, really. We were stuck in there for almost an hour, and she absolutely seemed to hate my guts. I don't know… There was something about her. I can't really pinpoint it but… I was drawn to her somehow. You could call me crazy," he smirked, knowing his mother would be heckling him about it yet also going on about love at first sight and destiny. Though Garfield didn't fully believe in that stuff, it always made him happy watching his mother's eyes sparkle to life as she spoke. "It's weird. I have this sort of attraction to her. I kind of want to see her again, but the only thing I know about her is her name… Raven."

He waited, wishing to gain some sort of sign like those stereotypical scenes in movies where the protagonist had a big moment of realization that set up the resolution of the movie. Alas, nothing happened.

Garfield chuckled again, but there was no humor in it, "Of course, you can't really give me any advice, can you?"

No response.

"... I really wish you were here. You have no idea how much I miss you."

He sighed before standing up. He approached the gravestone carefully. His hands grasped the stem of the Cardinals (her favorites) tightly, not wanting to let go. He leaned down and laid them in front of the stone reading ' _Rita Farr, Loving Mother and Wife.'_

Then, he buried his hands inside his pockets and strolled away. He made one more stop before he left, placing a red rose gently in front of his ex-girlfriend's gravestone. "You don't really deserve this, Tara… But even after everything you did, I really can't help still loving you," he whispered.

Garfield headed out of the graveyard, his eyes fixated on the shadow of his silhouette in front of him as he walked. He couldn't help but wondering what life would've looked like if he'd never gotten so close to that ape on that day twenty years ago. Would his biological parents still be alive? Surely, they would have returned home that year, ready to celebrate their successful business trip. They would've spent Christmas together, stuffing themselves with turkey and cookies like they always did, waking up really early that morning to walk to the park together, their hands tightly locked to each other as they readied themselves to watch the sunrise.

He would've never been taken in by that tribal king. He would've never gotten so close to dying that day one of his parent's nemesis ordered his minions to assassinate him, a poor defenseless six-year-old. Would've never gotten taken in by his parent's coworker who constantly pushed him around and treated him like shit, all simply to obtain his parents' inheritance.

But then again, he also wouldn't have gotten adopted by Rita and Steve. He would've never spent those precious Christmas nights with the Doom Patrol, celebrating their recent laboratory research publications. He would've never met his high school sweetheart, Tara, who provided him with the kind of affection he'd always craved for and also acted like the best friend he'd never had. But she wouldn't have betrayed him by hiding her illegal activities behind his back and sleeping with the fucked-up man that gave her the job.

He also wouldn't have lost her to Slade. He wouldn't have lost his adoptive family, including Rita, all in that freak accident during one of their laboratory experiments. Steve wouldn't be stuck inside a mental asylum, his brain unable to process the tragedy that occurred that night, unable to recognize his only son.

He often wondered what he'd done to anger the God everyone seemed to worship. What had he done to deserve that one bite that seemed to determine the rest of his life's suffering all those years ago?

"Butterfly effect…" he snickered humorlessly. "More like a fucking curse."

"Hey, man, you alright?" Victor questioned with a hint of worry as he reached his car.

Garfield only nodded as he got in the passenger's seat. Victor drove them in silence to their destination: the garage he'd adopted three years ago and was currently successfully managing.

When they arrived, they remained in the car for a few minutes, the silence speaking more than they ever could. It was a moment they shared every month after Garfield visited his mother's grave. Victor would drive him to the graveyard, stay in the car to give Garfield a private moment with his mother, and he would drive him back to his garage where they would play video games and drink beers together like nothing had happened. Though neither acknowledged it, it was an action that greatly aided Garfield's emotional state, and he knew he could trust Victor with his life.

"Ready?" Victor asked.

And like a switch abruptly flipped on, a goofy grin expanded on Garfield's expression, and as he dashed out of the car, he yelled, "Last one on the couch gets dish duty!"

Victor simply chuckled to himself and calmly followed him inside. Gar was already sprawled out on the couch setting up the console to play  _Ultra Mega Monkeys VI Limited Deluxe Edition - Banana Warcraft_. Victor shook his head amusingly as he headed towards his small kitchen to retrieve two cold beers and a family-size Doritos bag. When he entered the living room, Gar was already shooting bananas at the helmeted monkeys heading towards the screen in humongous tanks.

"Dude! Not fair at all!" Victor complained as he plopped down on the bean bag next to the couch. He snatched the second player controller and started a new round.

"Aw, man! I was so close!" Garfield loudly whined.

Victor snickered, "You bought it for yourself. You didn't wait for me, green bean."

Garfield pouted but otherwise continued frantically pressing the buttons of his own controller. A few hours later, the sixth 'Game Over' screen flashed across the TV and Garfield and Victor were thoroughly satisfied with their gaming session. They settled on watching Game of Thrones while aiming popcorn at each other's mouths (their usual sleepover dinners consisted purely of junk food).

"So, Wally invited us to one of his parties. He says that his one rich work friend, Dick, the VP at Wayne Enterprise, is hosting it at his penthouse. I think it's some type of engagement party or whatever. What do you say we go?" Victor proposed.

Garfield shrugged his shoulders as he caught a popcorn kernel in his mouth. He swallowed it before responding, "Sounds fun. Who's going?"

"Probably a dozen of important people or whatever but I know Mal and Karen are going for sure."

"Might as well, then. Maybe we'll get to meet some smoking hot ladies," Garfield beamed.

Victor wiggled his eyebrows, "What about getting to see your little elevator friend? You guys seemed oddly  _comfortable_  with each other, after all," he grinned

Garfield felt his face burn up. He snickered awkwardly in an attempt to conceal his embarrassment. "Dude, who says we were?" he stammered.

"I don't know, Gar. I'd  _never_  seen you act so smooth with a lady before. It was like it wasn't even you! Kissing her hand!? I've seen you trip over your own feet trying to talk to that one blonde at the bar! You didn't even stutter with this  _Raven_  girl!"

Garfield's face flushed an impossible shade of red as he recalled the moment. Truthfully, he wasn't sure what had gotten into him when he pulled that move. Considering he had been terrified by the intimidating girl throughout the whole elevator ride, he didn't believe his impulsiveness had actually compelled him to kiss her hand  _and_  make such intense eye contact (not to mention the little cafe episode that he hadn't yet talked to Vic about).

Not only that but he didn't believe a girl like  _Raven_  could actually be nervous around him—the goofy, carefree, idiotic, and clumsy guy named after an obese orange cat. It honestly still felt like a dream, and Garfield couldn't help but pinch his arm again to make sure it wasn't (despite the fact that he'd done so more than twenty times since that day). Despite feeling utterly traumatized by his own actions, Garfield couldn't help but wish to meet her again. He'd been aching to see her since the moment she'd walked away from him that day at Wayne Enterprise, and when he had spotted her as he strolled by the cafe to get to the comic book store he visited on a weekly basis (he had recognized her hair, pale complexion, short stature and the outfit that complemented her curvaceous body well), he couldn't help but walk in to talk to her again, which had totally been worth it.

"Earth to Gar?" Victor interrupted his momentary stupor.

He muttered an unintelligible "Eh?"

"I asked if you liked her," Victor observed him with interest.

"Well, I mean…" Garfield's mouth went dry, and he struggled to find the proper words. "She's… hot..?"

Victor laughed, "You know that's not what I mean, green bean. You think girls are hot all the time, but I've never seen you look so dazed and so… red."

Garfield turned his face away despite knowing it wouldn't help, "I met her in an elevator for barely an hour, dude, and we barely talked in there considering she didn't seem to like me very much."

"Well, your almost-kiss looked pretty mutual to me," Victor grinned slyly.

"Dude! Just…" Garfield shrugged his shoulders and fumbled around with the zipper of his jacket. "Maybe? I don't know her very well…"

"... But you could get to know her better," Victor continued for him. "Would you like that?"

"I guess?" Garfield practically oozed insecurity (the complete opposite of how he had acted with Raven on those two occasions, which wasn't exactly reassuring for him).

"Then it's settled, I'll be your wingman at that party," Victor assured him.

"How do you know she'll even be at the party?" he muttered.

Victor placed a thought-provoking finger under his chin and remained silent for a few seconds. "I guess I'll find out. I know Karen works at Wally's place too. She might know something considering she's popular everywhere she lands. And if she doesn't, we'll figure something out. That guy Dick must know her if she works at his company."

"Maybe…" Garfield's thoughts trailed off as Victor got up to clean up their mess. He couldn't help but wonder more about Raven. There was something so oddly unique about her personality, but he couldn't really pinpoint it. He also couldn't help but think how coincidental their meeting had been considering the only reason he'd shown up at Wally's workplace was to return the house key he'd left at his house. Otherwise, he would've never thought about stepping foot in a place like  _that_.

Sure, Garfield wasn't by any means poor (he was actually rather well-off), but he had never liked the snotty environment those types of prestigious company buildings emanated, especially from people like Richard Grayson, the boy wonder (that's the way magazines tended to refer to him considering he had climbed the ranks to vice president of his adoptive father's company at a rather young age).

So ending up in a building like that stuck in an elevator with a girl he found he liked (Maybe? He still wasn't sure) had to be more than  _just_  a fluke, didn't it?

Perhaps the butterfly effect wasn't as awful as he'd originally deemed it to be. Perhaps it was some form of… destiny?

Garfield shook his head to get rid of his dangerous trail of thought. It was too early to deem it anywhere near destiny. Raven was just a random girl he'd met by random occurrence. There wasn't anything special about it, and there was a rather low chance he'd get to see her again. Even if he did see her again, he found it hard to believe a girl like  _her_  would ever give a guy like  _him_  the time of day.

He let out a dry chuckle. A girl like Raven paying attention to him would probably equal the end of the world, and even though life had been rather tough with Garfield, he did want to continue living… For the time being, at least.

Plus, such thing as a  _happy_  destiny or "love at first sight" didn't exist for people like Garfield, and taking in account her demeanor, he doubted it existed for people like Raven either. 

* * *

**Date: Saturday, March 23, 2019**

**A/N: I know I've been rather slow in updating Glass and quicker with this story but I haven't had a chance to write. Keep in mind that this story already has the first four chapters pre-written. The rest will be written as I get more feedback. Anyhow, this chapter contained minimal BBRae because I wanted to build up to the themes I will be tackling later on. I will eventually probably change the rating and genre of the story since I'm presuming it might get rather dark at one point.**

**So during the last chapter, I asked what Garfield pretended to be during the first few issues of the _Titans Volume 3_  run when he visited Raven at her school. The first person to answer correctly was, again, a guest and Allen Blaster with the answer bear.** **And you guys were correct! Garfield pretended to be a bear-a-gram as he deemed it, and I thought it was super cute! He also brought her flowers he ripped out of the front office plants which was such a Beast Boy thing to do XD**

**This question will be a little harder even though this chapter was rather short.  
The next chapter will be really long 5000+ words, but I might decide to split it in half...**

**Question**

**Raven once admitted to Garfield that "[she thought] about _?_ the Titans... a lot."**   
**(I'm looking for the exact word. It comes from the same issue the previous**   
**question was based on.)**

**Answer**

**?**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: This chapter contains semi-sexual content.**

Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ

 

> _“Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity.”_
> 
> Lucius Annaeus Seneca

"You have got to be kidding me."

"Nice to see you again too, Rae," Garfield sent her his signature, idiotic grin as he plopped down beside her at the bar in Dick's oh-so luxurious penthouse.

Raven suppressed the urge to scream in frustration. She massaged the middle of her temple (like she usually did during or after an encounter with him) and huffed, "First of all, it's Ra-ven," she started. "Second of all, what the hell are you doing here?"

Garfield let out an aggravating snicker that resounded inside her head. "What do you think I'm doing here? I'm clearly sitting at a bar trying to pick up some ladies," he stated as if it were obvious.

"As in why are you at this party in the first place," she gritted her teeth. She didn't have the patience to deal with him at the moment.

"I was invited! Duh! How else would I have gotten here?" Garfield shrugged his shoulders.

"Who the fuck invited  _you_?"

"Gee, Rae, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were flirting with me," he wiggled his eyebrows before leaning in to whisper in her ear, "Two can play at that game."

"Stop," she demanded, her hand pressing against his chest and pushing him back in his seat.

"Stop what?" Garfield tilted his head and watched her with curious, puppy-like eyes. If he wasn't so darn cute, she'd-

"Stop doing whatever the hell you're doing!" she exclaimed.

"Uh…" Garfield furrowed his eyebrows. "Talking?"

"No!" her eyes widened at her implication. "I mean, yes! Just leave me alone!" she groaned and placed her hands over her face to avoid eye contact. She was so not dealing with him today. She'd had a horrible day already, and she didn't need to add one more headache into her plate.

"You know, we must be meant to be. Three meetings already? The first one might've been luck, but I call this one destiny," he teased, bluntly ignoring her pleads and continuing to flirt with her.

"This is the opposite of luck," she grumbled as she waved over the bartender and asked for her second dry martini that hour. Perhaps she was already a bit tipsy, and you'd think she'd learned her lesson by now (considering he was sitting right next to her), but she really didn't care how drunk she got, she just didn't want to think at the moment.

"Want to hear a joke?" he abruptly asked.

"God, please no."

But alas, he continued without her compliance, "So a guy walks into a bar-"

"What did I do to deserve this?" she muttered under her breath as she took a sip of her martini.

"-and asks for 10 shots of the establishment's finest single malt scotch. The bartender sets him up, and the guy takes the first shot in the row and pours it on the floor. He then takes-"

She frowned when the inevitable thumping commenced inside her head.

"-the last shot in the row and does the same. The bartender asks, "Why did you do that?" And the guy replies, "Well the first shot always tastes like crap, and the last one always makes me sick!" he patted his knee and clutched his stomach as he burst into laughter.

Raven seemingly glared at the rack of wine bottles behind the bar. She continued to drink her martini while Garfield recuperated from his laughter attack.

"Aw come on! You can't tell me that wasn't good!" he whined like a little kid.

"It wasn't good," Raven deadpanned as she took a sip.

"Gee, tough audience," Garfield took a sip of his own beer bottle, which she had just noticed he had. Was she really that drunk already? And despite the realization, she couldn't bring herself to care. The only reason she was even at the party was because both Kory and Karen had insisted that she should go since it'd be  _fun_. So far, this wasn't her definition of fun. She had to learn to stop listening to their suggestions, but admittedly, besides the fact that she was there to celebrate Dick and Kory's overdue engagement, she'd shown up to avoid moping around in her apartment and thinking about  _him_. She clutched her glass tightly and grimaced as he invaded her thoughts yet again. She took another drink, hoping the buzz inside her head would soon blur out her memory.

"Oh! I got a better one!" Garfield started again, the thumping inside her head gaining speed and pressure. Could he just shut the fuck up?

"A gorilla walks into a bar and says, "A scotch on the rocks, please." The gorilla hands the-"

"Please stop…" she murmured, but he either didn't hear or he blatantly ignored her.

"-bartender a $10 bill. The bartender thinks to himself, "This gorilla doesn't know the prices of drinks," and gives him-"

His voice echoed inside her mind at a resounding volume, and she resisted the need to cover her ears in hopes that everything would go quiet, "Please shut up…" she insisted.

"-15 cents change. The bartender says, "You know, we don't get too many gorillas-"

At this point, his voice was like continuous thundering inside her head, and it felt like she had developed tinnitus just from listening to him. "Could you just fucking stop talking…" she clutched her ears. She was convinced that not even ripping her own ears off in front of him would discourage him from continuing his nonsensical blabber.

"-in here." The gorilla replies, "Well, at $9.85 a drink, I ain't-"

Raven downed her drink, and before she could properly consider the consequences of her actions, she snatched him by the collar and pulled him into a fervent kiss to shut him up. She deemed it a success considering his annoying voice ceased to be, and her hearing finally rested from the hell it'd been condemned to.  _Much better_ , she thought.

Garfield tensed up, completely taken aback by the unexpected smooch, but once he realized what was happening, he relaxed his shoulders, and his hands gently grasped the sides of her waist. His tongue eagerly slid inside her mouth the moment her lips parted, and he savoured the slight sweetness and overall alcoholic taste of her own tongue. To his surprise, Raven got out of her chair and sat on his lap, her legs swaying on either side of his chair as she pushed her body against his. The feel of her ample chest pressed against his own chest and her fingers caressing his hair while her other hand traveled down his back sent tremors across his skin and triggered something primal within him. His palms gradually slid down her waist in a greedy attempt to feel more of her.

Before their make-out session could ignite any further, however, they heard someone clear their throat behind them. Like a switch flicked on, Raven practically leaped out of his lap, her heels getting stuck on the bars below his seat and almost sending her tumbling on her back. He managed to grip her arms to stabilize her until she hurriedly jumped away from him and found her own balance. She avoided his gaze like it was the plague.

Richard Grayson crossed his arms and observed them curiously, "Uh, so… I was going to ask you something, Raven, but if you're busy, I can-"

"No, no, no!" Raven stammered. She didn't bother glancing at Garfield and instead latched onto Richard's arm and pulled him away into a hallway Garfield hadn't yet explored.

He couldn't help the burning jealousy flaring within his stomach, not to mention the fact that his body temperature felt like it had increased ten degrees in the course of a few minutes and his pants were feeling a bit too constricting. But once his body seemingly settled down, his brain kicked into action, and he was left wondering what the fuck had just taken place.

"Well that was a, uh, surprise," Dick cleared his throat. "I didn't realize you had a… partner..?"

"I don't," Raven mumbled through gritted teeth. "Now, what do you need?"

"I don't know if that's a very appropriate way to talk to the man who pays you, Raven," Dick commented amusingly.

Raven huffed and crossed her arms, "You very well much know you wouldn't fire me. You wouldn't find anyone to replace me," she smirked.

"Touché," Dick arched an eyebrow. "Anyhow, I came over to ask you if you could head over to the office tonight after the party and retrieve some files I left on my desk. They're in a manilla folder that you can't miss. They're kind of important, and Bruce is going to hand me my ass if I lose them."

Raven rolled her eyes and turned on her heel, "I'll go right now then."

"Woah, hold on there," Dick pulled her back. "You don't have to leave right now."

"I'd rather do it now. I'm starting to get a headache," she muttered while pressing a hand to her forehead.

Dick sighed, "Alright then, can you at least say bye to Kory? She'll be disappointed if you don't."

"Fine," she muttered and followed him to the living room.

Raven struggled through the crowd of people dancing to Pitbull's voice blasting through the speakers. Finally, she managed to stumble past the bunch to a sofa on the corner where Kory and a few of her other friends sat chatting. Her eyes lit up when she spotted Dick, and she hopped to her feet and tackled him with a hug, "Richard! Where did you go?"

"I went to get Raven," Dick sputtered through forced breaths. Kory finally released him from her suffocating hug, and she set her eyes on Raven.

"Friend! Where have you been? You disappeared a while ago, and we could not find you," Kory furrowed her eyebrows.

"I went to have a few drinks," Raven shrugged. "I have to go now, Kory. I hope you enjoy the rest of your night."

"What do you mean, Raven? Already? You didn't even find yourself a cute guy to dance with!" Karen perked up. She tsked disapprovingly, "I forbid you from leaving this building!"

"Bee, I really can't right now. I'm exhausted, and Dick wants me to go retrieve something from the office," she replied, hoping the blame would pass on to Dick.

As predicted, Karen sent Dick the dirty eye, "Fine, Rae. But one of us should drive you there, at least. It's already late, and you said you had a few drinks?"

"Don't worry, Bee. I'm not driving tonight. I'm taking the train," Raven assured.

Kory frowned, "Should you be taking the train so late at night?"

"Yeah, Kory's right. I can get someone to drive you there," Dick added.

Raven shook her head, "It's alright. I need some fresh air."

Dick frowned, "Raven, if you're-"

"I assure you I'll be okay. Have a good time and congratulations again," she smiled at Dick and Kory before heading out without another word.

The night was dark and placid. She clutched the sides of her jacket as she ambled down the street. The gentle wind wrapped around her expression and tickled her skin. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, attempting to calm her riled thoughts. God, it had been a stressful week. She couldn't wait to get home and sleep. For now, this was the best rest she'd get, however.

Unlike other girls, Raven wasn't afraid of walking down the dark street in the midst of the night. Growing up with both a mentally and physically abusive father as well as a careless mother allowed her to generate a protective shell around herself, and fear was no longer a prevalent quality. Sure, she knew it was dangerous, but that didn't scare her. After all, she wasn't afraid to die. She wasn't suicidal. On the contrary, she preferred to live in the present and if she happened to turn the corner early into death's door, she'd be ready.

It took her a ten-minute train ride and a twenty-minute walk to arrive at Wayne Enterprise. She unlocked the door, and she headed up the flights of stairs to Dick's office. When she retrieved the manila folder he had mentioned, she took a moment to sit down on Dick's chair and breathe. The room was silent and the only light source was that of the glass panel windows displaying the bright giant in the sky. She closed her eyes for one second, enough to calm herself. By the time she opened her eyes, she could hear the trickling on the windows and the faint rumble from the skies. How long had she been out?

She stumbled on her feet and hurried out. The alcohol seemed to have finally kicked in considering her head was woozy, and she felt like she was walking on a tightrope. Fortunately, she remembered to lock the door when she finally made it out of the building. Unfortunately, she was only wearing a thin jacket above her bodycon dress, and the temperature seemed to have dropped a few degrees with the storm.

Raven might've been stubborn, but she wasn't stupid. She took out her phone from her pocket to dial Dick. Seven missed calls within the course of an hour. Before she could even unlock her phone, the screen turned black.

"Shit," she muttered. She stuck the phone in her pocket and examined her surroundings.

It was even darker with the storm, and there wasn't a single soul outside. After all, who else was stupid enough to walk outside during a thunderstorm in the middle of the night?

She made sure to stick Dick's 'important' files inside her purse to avoid them getting wet. She sighed, and she made her way down the sidewalk, attempting to remain under the ceilings of each establishment yet still managing to get drenched. A few minutes into her walk, a car slowed down beside her, and Raven made sure to grip the pocket knife through the fabric of her jacket in case she'd have to use it. The windows rolled down, and instead of glaring at the individual as she intended, her jaw dropped open.

"Seriously Rae? Taking a stroll in the middle of the night during a storm? I didn't think you were that daring," Garfield grinned at her.

"How the hell.."

"Get inside and I'll explain."

Raven didn't hesitate on getting in the car considering the water was seeping through her layers, and she was already freezing. Garfield took off his jacket and handed it to her. Though she was a sole opposer of chivalry, Raven also didn't want to get hypothermia, so she grabbed the jacket and hastily slipped it on.

"I just got out of the party, thought you were still there. I was headed to my apartment when I saw someone walking out. I was curious and imagine my surprise when I realized it was you," he chuckled as he drove calmly down the street. "What are you doing out?"

"Had to pick up some files for Dick," she muttered.

"Oh…" he replied with furrowed eyebrows. "He sent you out on foot during a storm? Sounds like a  _dick_  move."

Raven noticed the playful grin on his expression, and she rolled her eyes. "He didn't. I sent myself. Fell asleep for a while inside, and I didn't realize it was going to rain." She clutched her sides tightly and rubbed them, wishing she could be wrapped inside the warm blankets of her bed.

"Where's your place?" he asked.

"It's only a block away. Turn right on the McDonald's at Lamar."

"Huh, that's actually pretty close to my apartment."

Raven didn't comment on it, and when they pulled up outside her apartment building, they sat in silence for a second. She reached inside her purse in search of her keys. When she didn't feel them, she let out a loud groan.

"What's up?" he arched an eyebrow.

"I think I left my keys at Dick's place," she grumbled while pressing two fingers on the bridge of her nose. "Can I borrow your phone?"

"Sure," he reached his hand into his back pocket. After fumbling around for it, his eyes went wide. "Shit…"

"Please don't tell me…"

"I forgot I left it charging at my apartment before the party. I wasn't counting on using it considering I was going with Vic and nobody else calls me," he snickered awkwardly, his hand scratching the back of his head.

Garfield bit his lip, and he swallowed a sense of apprehension, hoping she wouldn't snap at him for what he was about to say next. "You can stay at my place… If you want…" he offered.

Raven spent a few seconds contemplating her options. He couldn't drop her off at any of her friend's places considering they were all planning to stay at Dick's. She could technically go back to Dick's place and crash there, but it was at least a thirty-minute drive, and Raven already felt like passing out. Not to mention she would have to explain herself to everyone, and they were probably going to continue their party for another few hours. Would she even be able to sleep with the blasting music?

She could accept Garfield's offer, but she didn't exactly know him. It was taking a risk, and with everything that had been happening beforehand, did she  _really_  trust him? He seemed like a nice guy, but she couldn't judge him purely on that fact. Then again, she was good at reading people, and he didn't seem to have any malicious intent. Their run-in had also been a coincidence, so he couldn't have planned anything.

"Okay," she replied.

Garfield grinned and turned on the engine. He drove down a few blocks, the only sound coming from the drops hitting the glass and the low hum of the radio in the background. He parked his car at a much nicer apartment building than Raven's, and she couldn't help but raise her eyebrows, a bit surprised that he could afford a place like that.

"Well, this is it," he turned off the engine and reached behind his seat to grab an umbrella. "Here ya go," he handed it to her.

"What about you?"

"Rae, I'm not the one drenched and freezing," he grinned and hopped out of the car.

Raven opened the umbrella and followed him inside the apartment complex. After making a few turns, they stopped at a door near the end of the hallway numbered fifty-two. Garfield fumbled around in his pocket and retrieved his keys. He unlatched the door and extended a hand to let her walk in first. She raised an eyebrow before walking inside.

His apartment was quite homey with an electric fireplace in the living room and a few sofas around it. There was a dining table behind one of the sofas right next to the kitchen. The walls were painted a dull grey and there were a lot of paintings of nature around, making it feel like a forest. There was a small, electric fountain atop one of the coffee tables releasing a relaxing sound.

"Make yourself at home," Garfield smiled as he placed his keys on the coffee table. When he noticed her rubbing the sides of her arms, he hurriedly snatched a towel from one of the closets and handed it to her. "There's a bathroom down the hallway, third door to your right. I can lend you one of my t-shirts and shorts. You really have to get out of those wet clothes or you'll get sick. I'll leave them outside the bathroom door."

Raven nodded and grabbed the towel before walking towards the bathroom. After taking a relaxing hot shower, she peeked out the bathroom and as promised, there were some shorts and a t-shirt gently folded in front of the door. She decided to skip the bra considering it was thoroughly drenched and the shirt was a solid, dark color. She did, however, keep her panties as they had managed to dry during the course of her shower. Fortunately, both of Garfield's garments fit fairly well.

When she exited the restroom, she could hear sounds coming from the kitchen. She left her wet clothing hanging from one of the doors and followed the sounds. Garfield was inside fumbling about in the pantry.

"What are you doing?"

He seemingly jerked at the sound of her voice and hit his forehead against one of the shelves from the abrupt movement. "Ow," he muttered and backed away, a hand clutching his head.

"You okay?" she questioned.

"Yeah, you just scared me," he chuckled. He surprised her when he took out a tea box from the pantry.

"You drink tea..?" she raised both eyebrows.

"Nah, but my mom… used to," he muttered, his voice lowering.

Raven nodded and decided to avoid the topic.

Garfield's eyes traced down her body, and his face flushed a bit. "Uh, I'm glad they fit…" he muttered, his eyes glancing for a little too long at his shirt which fit snugly around her chest.

Raven sent him a glare, and Garfield quickly looked away. She walked to the living room where her phone was plugged in and dialed Dick.

"Raven!?" he exclaimed when he picked up. "What the hell? I called you about twenty times and you didn't answer. Kory was worried that you'd-"'

She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, letting Dick's lecture end. Five minutes later, she finally had room to speak. "I'm at a friend's place. He saw me walking down the street in the middle of the storm and brought me to his place. My phone died, and I left my keys at your house. That's why I didn't answer."

"I thought you said you wouldn't do the whole not charging your phone thing again after last time," he grumbled.

"I haven't exactly had the best day, and Kory and Karen insisted I go, so it completely slipped my mind to charge my phone. Not to mention you're the one who sent me off on this errand of yours," she pointed out.

"Fine," Dick sighed. "Do you need me to send someone to pick you up?"

"Don't worry about it. It's storming pretty badly out there, and everyone's probably busy enjoying themselves. I have a feeling most of you guys are drunk too. I can just crash here."

"Who are you with?" he asked.

Raven bit her lip, debating whether she should tell him or not. "A friend," she repeated.

"What friend?" he insisted, taking on his usual older brother role.

"Richard, I'm fine," she muttered.

Dick didn't drop the subject, however. "You called him a he. Is it the guy you were with earlier?"

"Yes. You happy with that answer?"

"I don't-"

"I'm fine, Richard. I'm hanging up now," she rolled her eyes before hanging up the phone. She placed the phone on the coffee table and let out a deep breath. She still felt a little woozy from the alcohol in her body, and she was struggling with keeping her eyes open.

"One cup of tea for the miss," Garfield entered the room holding a mug with steaming liquid. He placed it on the table in front of her and took a seat on the sofa facing the one she was sitting on. Raven took hold of the tea and blew on it before taking a sip. Though it wasn't the way she preferred it, it was tolerable and the burning on her tongue served as a distraction from her thumping head.

"Hey, Rae, about what happened at the party… Our, uh, moment…" he sheepishly scratched the back of his head, his confident persona seemingly melting away. "Did you do that just to shut me up or…"

Raven gulped down the last bit of her tea in a few seconds and glanced at him. "That… Was a mistake," she muttered.

"Oh…" he squeaked. "That's alright too, I guess."

Raven felt a twinge of remorse in her chest and before she could help it, she started talking, "Gar, you're a really nice guy… but I'm not really looking for a relationship."

Garfield remained silent for a few seconds before asking, "Why not?"

The question caught her by surprise considering she didn't expect the insistence from a guy like him. He appeared to notice as he quickly exclaimed, "I didn't mean it in a forceful way… I was just curious. Sorry, I shouldn't intrude on your personal life."

"Don't worry about it," she muttered and traced the hem of her cup. "I just got out of a particularly abusive relationship, and I'm not really ready for another one," she explained. She wasn't sure why she was opening up, but she presumed it was the alcohol speaking. "It's a little hard to get over someone who was a part of your life for so long… Someone who you trusted with every bit of your soul. It's really hard," she admitted, her eyes avoiding his own.

After a few moments of silence, he spoke, "I know what you mean."

Raven glanced at him, and his mind appeared to be in a different world considering he was looking off into nothingness with glossy eyes.

"I was in a similar situation," he started. "I thought she was the love of my life. Turns out I was wrong… And the worst part is, I can't even stand to be mad at her."

"Why not?" she dared to ask.

Garfield sighed, "She passed away about a year ago after cheating on me with her partner in crime. Even if I have a lot of resentment towards her, I can't help but wish she was still with me sometimes."

They sat in tense silence, unsure of what to say. Garfield chuckled sadly, and Raven felt a strange sense of pity towards the way he seemed to conceal his grief behind his laughter. "We're both kind of fucked up, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess we are," she nodded while biting the inside of her lip.

Garfield stood up, and Raven assumed he was heading to his bedroom, but he took a seat next to her instead. He stayed quiet for a long while, and she wondered if she should say something, but she couldn't find anything to address.

"You can sleep on my bed tonight. I can stay here," he finally said.

"It's your house, Gar. I should sleep here."

"Nah, I insist. Besides, sometimes it's good to sleep on the couch. Change of scenery and all," he smiled.

Raven stared at him for a moment, a rather stupid idea coming to fruition inside her head. She bit her lip, "We could both sleep on the bed."

Garfield's eyes widened, and his mouth opened and closed as if trying to find the words to speak. All that came out was an unintelligible, "Wha?"

Raven rolled her eyes and turned to face him. "You said it yourself. We're both damaged goods, and you can't really deny the ongoing tension we seem to have. Why don't we… I don't know… Act on it?"

"... What do you mean… I thought you said you weren't ready for a relationship?" he tilted his head.

"Not a relationship," she declared. "More of a  _fling_ , I guess you could call it."  _Yep, the alcohol had officially taken over._ But she still couldn't bring herself to care. Perhaps it was exactly what she needed.

"Like… Friends with benefits..?" he questioned carefully.

Raven nodded, and Garfield regarded her with surprise. "Raven, I think you might be drunk… We really shouldn't agree on something like this while you're in this state."

"I'm not drunk, Gar. I just…" she searched around for the words. "I need something to get my mind off of…" She couldn't say his name. She wouldn't. "... Everything, I guess. Can you deny that you don't need something to distract you?"

"It's not healthy, Rae."

Raven moved closer to him, "Being caught up on your dead girlfriend isn't healthy either, Gar, especially after she cheated on you."

"I… don't know," he stuttered.

Raven rolled her eyes, feeling rather impatient with him. She stood up and abruptly took a seat on his lap, her thighs sitting on either side of him and her eyes tracing his expression curiously. On instinct, he set his hands on her waist, and he gawked at her, unsure of what to do. She felt her grip on herself deteriorating, but she didn't act on her impulses just yet. "Well..?" she asked.

She pressed herself against his body, her nose practically touching his. The feeling of her soft chest against his front and his realization that she had forgone her bra considering he could feel her nipples harden caused his pants to instantly grow tighter.

"... I… Okay…" he gave in.

She smiled, the same kind of expression he had given her during his teasing moments. Her indigo eyes stared deeply into his own forest green eyes, and he found himself entranced by them. Then, it took only a spark to ignite the fire. As soon as their lips made contact, Garfield pulled her tighter against his torso and rubbed the sides of her waist. The kiss was the complete opposite of gentle and sweet seeing as it was a product of the sexual tension that had been building up since the day they'd met. It was starved and rough, their lips colliding desperately as if they were feeding off each other's life force.

Her nails scraped down his back and released a flood of shivers across his body. In the course of a few seconds, his body felt like it was on fire, the flames enwrapping his limbs and fogging up his mind. His palms sneakily made their way under her shirt, and he caressed the skin of her back. When she didn't object, his palms gently traveled up her spine, admiring the softness of her skin.

He felt Raven breathe in like she was anticipating his next move. Garfield took the chance to slip his tongue inside her mouth, and he savored the taste of every nook and cranny. She moaned into the kiss, and Garfield's palms wondered around her before squeezing her breasts. He rolled his fingers around her nipple, admiring the feel of it hardening against his touch. She let out a purr-like sound, and it flipped a switch inside Garfield.

He abruptly raised her up and laid her on her back, quickly slipping off his shirt for a moment. He instantly crashed his lips against hers once again, and his hands clutched the sides of her shirt before raising it above her head. He threw the shirt to the side and admired the view of her for a moment, his eyes tracing every detail of her body like he was memorizing her. He leaned down and found her lips again, leaving a trail of kisses around her mouth. His lips traced down the side of her neck before finding their way to her chest. He planted a light kiss of her right breast before taking it into his mouth, his tongue swirling around and arising a moan. One of his hands gently massaged her left breast while the other gently snapped the band of her shorts (technically his).

Raven's nails raked across his back lightly, and they ended up at the band of his own sweatpants. Before she could make another move, Garfield took hold of her hands and stared at her. Raven furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"Are you sure you want this, Rae?" he asked, his eyes full of desire, apprehension, and a spark of innocence that made her hesitate for only a moment. However, the passing thought of her previous lover was the only thing it took for her to swiftly flip them around and eagerly nod before her mouth attacked his own and her hands earnestly slid inside his pants.

Raven knew it was a terrible idea. She knew it was unhealthy. She knew she'd probably regret it down the line.

But Raven was also a live-in-the-moment type of girl, and at the moment, she desperately needed to latch onto a distraction that didn't involve her ex. And lucky for her, Garfield served as the perfect distraction. 

* * *

**Date: Sunday, April 14, 2019**

**A/N: This is the closest I'm getting to writing sexually-explicit material. I don't think I can pull it off, to be honest. It takes certain skills to pull off a sexy scene, but it's a skill I don't really hold. I'm glad you guys are enjoying it. Someone mentioned in the last chapter that this story has a lighter feel than my others. Though it is somewhat lighter than the Broken-Glass series, I'm warning you now it will get a little darker. I don't know if you've guys caught any of my hints throughout the past chapters but neither Raven nor Gar are kind of in great mind states right now, so it might end up going a somewhat dark route.**

**I'm not doing questions and answers anymore just because I don't have any more pre-made chapters, and it takes extra time to come up with questions. The answer to the last question was "murdering" and the closest person was Taygon55. Good job! You know your comics! I love the issue too!**

**If you haven't seen my A/N in Glass, I've been really busy, so the chapters will have longer time periods in between. Thank you for reading and please review. It makes me happy!**


	5. Chapter 5

Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ

> " _There are wounds that never show on the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds."_
> 
> Laurell K. Hamilton

"Just…" Raven placed a hand over her forehead and sighed. "Please leave. I can't deal with you right now."

"You used to love spending time with me, Raven. What happened?" he asked, taking a step forward and causing her to stumble back, hand slipping off the door handle.

"Malchior, I don't know how many times I have to tell you that we're over," she muttered through gritted teeth.

Malchior continued walking forward, practically cornering Raven in her own apartment. "I've asked you to forgive me countless times, Raven. What more do I have to do?"

"Leave," she narrowed her eyes and froze in her spot, fists clenched.

Malchior pushed her back on the couch and stared down at her, "Why won't you forgive me?"

"Just go away!" Raven jumped up and tried to push him back, but he snatched her wrists and held her in place.

"Leave her alone!" someone exclaimed from behind them and in the span of a second, Malchior was on the ground next to her. Dick held him down with an elbow to make sure he didn't move.

"Oh, Raven! Are you alright?" Kory hurriedly placed her arms around her, though Raven seemingly froze in place, silently staring forward. She felt nothing. No fear. No anger. No sadness. Nothing.

"Yes, this is Officer Grayson. I need an officer at ***** right away. I have a report on an intrusion and domestic abuse," she heard Dick talking in the background. "Yes, I have him contained."

"Friend?" Kory pulled her away and examined her. "Did he do something?"

"No," she finally responded by shaking her head. "No, Kory. I'm alright."

* * *

"Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey!" Garfield awoke to Victor's blaring voice. He groaned into his pillow and turned to his side. "Go away," he murmured.

"No can do, soldier. I'm here to stay," Vic replied, and Garfield felt him sit next to him on the bed. "You brought on quite a show yesterday, Gar. And you wouldn't tell me why."

Garfield groaned again and buried his head deeper into the pillow, "I don't want to talk about it."

"On other occasions, I wouldn't insist with you Gar but considering the condition I found you in yesterday, I really do want to know what triggered it," he continued.

Garfield removed his face from the pillow and turned to look at him, "I really don't want to talk about it, Vic."

"Was it something involving you parents? Or Tara? Or Jillian?"

"It had nothing to do with them," he sat up and knocked the back of his head on the bed frame.

"Then?" Victor asked again.

Garfield remained silent for a second before answering, "I ran into Raven after the party."

"Raven…" Victor furrowed his eyebrows, seemingly attempting to recall the name. "Oh, the elevator girl?"

Garfield nodded, "She was walking alone in the rain, I gave her a ride home but turns out she didn't have any keys so I brought her over to help…" he sighed. "I made a stupid mistake, slept with her, next morning we fought because she didn't want to talk about what happened or the fact that she was just using me to feel better."

"And then..?" Victor pushed on.

"And then," Garfield took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "She told me I was a hypocrite because I'm still caught up with Tara when I told her she couldn't deal with her feelings … which is true."

Victor nodded as he spoke. "And it caused you to spiral into an episode?" he asked.

Garfield remained quiet considering he already knew the answer to that statement. He shrugged, "I thought Raven was different. I guess there really isn't anyone perfect out there for me. Not after Tara…"

Victor sighed and rubbed the top of his head as he paced around the room. He hated seeing his best friend like this. It worried him to even leave him in the apartment by himself. Not after what happened last time.

"I'll tell you what. You need to get out of this place."

"And go where?"

"We need a guy's night out. No alcohol. No girls. Just our buddies and us hanging out, having some fun."

Garfield huffed, "And what do you expect to do?"

"We can head to a club with Roy and Wally or something. Just have a fun night out."

"You realize that's the opposite of no alcohol and no girls?" he groaned as he slumped back down. "Can't I just stay here?"

"Fine, how about we go out to eat, then? Better idea that way? We can just hang out, maybe go to a Bee's place after to see what she's got going."

"Bee always has something going on, and there's almost always girls and alcohol."

"I won't let you get near them though," Victor pointed out. He clutched Garfield's shoulder and forced him to sit up. "Come on. It'll be fun. I promise."

* * *

Dick accompanied the cops to take Malchior in after they arrived, and Kory stayed back to make sure Raven was okay because she clearly wasn't. Even after dozens of questions, Raven had barely spoken a word. Kory had already gone through all the motions, making her tea, sitting her on the bed, bringing her a comfy blanket and a pillow, yet Raven still wasn't talking to her.

"Could you at least tell me what happened?" Kory asked her yet again.

She knew her friend was worried, but she couldn't bring herself to talk at all. She was exhausted. All she wanted to do was lie down and never wake up. She was tired of faking her way through everything. After Malchior, everything had gotten more difficult, and she could barely stand her repetitive schedule. Even when the girls had attempted to take her out, it proved to be a bad idea.

"When I went to pick up those files for Dick, my phone was dead, and it started to rain. There was no way for me to contact anyone at all, and by chance," she took a deep breath. "This guy I met a few weeks ago showed up in his car."

"A guy?" She could hear the hope behind Kory's tone, and strangely enough, she could feel a tinge of it too, but she preferred to dismiss the feeling. She couldn't spiral into that hole. Not again. Not after she slept with him.

"His name is Gar. We met in an elevator…"

"Oh how romantic!" Kory squealed.

Raven sent her a glare, and she instantly shut her mouth.

"Sorry," she squeaked. "Go on."

"Much to say, he's an annoying doofus…" she breathed out and looked down at her hands, guilt overwhelming her yet again. She hated the feeling—like something was eating her out from the inside, reminding her that it was her fault, that it wasn't supposed to happen that way, that Gar was correct in saying she couldn't deal with her emotions. She had never been able to fully conquer them, not her. And then she had pinned it all on Gar, even after he'd refused to sleep with her after he told her she wasn't in the right mindset. But she had insisted because deep down, she knew she did it to forget about  _him_  for just a moment. A moment in which, dangerously enough, she had uncovered some other disturbing feeling she'd rather not acknowledge, a puzzling sentiment toward Gar himself. She didn't like it one bit. "But he's nice. He gave me a ride home, but I realize I didn't have my keys, and he didn't have his phone. There was no way to contact anyone, and it was too late to find the landlord to open the door for me. So he took me to his place."

Kory's expression shifted from hope to concern, "Did he..?"

"He didn't do anything bad if that's what you mean," she shook her head before looking up at her, eyes as vulnerable as they could get. She hated when she got like this, especially around other people, even if that person was Kory. She preferred to have her moments alone, locked in her apartment to break down by herself, without concerning anyone. Despite faking that perfect image, Raven was not perfect at all. She was a mess inside. "It was me who did something."

"What did you do?" Kory stared at her with furrowed eyebrows.

"I slept with him even after he told me not to, even after he told me about his dead girlfriend and after I told him about Malchior. I was hurting. I was somewhat dazed from the alcohol. I was tired," tears started streaming down her cheeks, and she turned away to prevent Kory from seeing her like that. Kory placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Tired of feeling so conflicted. My head is a mess. I don't even know what to think or what to do. I just wanted a break from my thoughts, and I saw the opportunity with him."

"And you regret it?"

It took Raven a moment to answer. Did she regret it? For sure, she regretted the way she had treated him the morning after. But did she  _really_  regret their moments together? After all, he'd been so caring, so gentle with the way he grazed her skin, ran his fingers through her locks, kissed her in such a passionate way, always asking her if something was okay. He was so loving in the way he had handled her. Surely, it didn't feel like  _just another fling_. She'd had casual hookups before and never before had she felt so adored with any of them. It felt like…

Raven bit her lip, hard enough to draw blood. Kory noticed, and she was quick to bring her a towel. She gently patted the spot to clean her up as if Raven wasn't in the condition to do it herself. She really wasn't.

"I don't," she confessed after Kory put the towel down. "But I treated him really badly afterward. I went as far as to bring up his girlfriend. And I could tell he was really hurt. He told me to never come back to him."

"And you'll do what he told you to?"

After a second, she nodded. "I respect his wishes. I acted like an asshole. Besides, I don't deserve someone like him."

Kory breathed in and grasped her hand ever-so-gently. She sent her friend, her sister by heart, a faint smile, "I think someone like him might be exactly what you need, Raven, but I'm not one to tell you what to do. Only you know what's best for you, and only you know if you're ready to get out of this hole of despair you've trapped yourself in."

Raven simply stared at her, unsure of what to say. She was right. Kory was always right when it came to situations like that.

A knock on the door startled them both, and Kory got up to answer. When she opened the door, Karen practically paraded into the living room with a wide smile. "Ready for a girl's night out?"

Kory glanced at Raven before saying, "I don't think it's the right time for a night out, Bee."

"No, it's okay," Raven surprised them and herself by uttering that. But she smiled. Perhaps she was ready to take Kory's advice. "I'm sure it'll be fun."

* * *

"So are we contacting Bee after this to see if she has a party going on or what?" Roy questioned as he popped another fry into his mouth.

Garfield admitted it, the place was nice. They'd never been to this particular dinner to eat out. The food was pretty good, the music was great, and the ambient of people chatting was a nice change of scenery from his lonely apartment. But there were a lot of hot waitresses carrying beers around, and every time Garfield caught one in sight, he hurriedly turned away to resist the temptation.

"That's the plan," Vic nodded.

"Your plates will be out in just a few more minutes," the waitress who was attending them told them, sending a flirty smile toward Garfield before walking away.

"You see how she looked at you?" Wally laughed. "Lucky son of a bitch. You always get so much attention when we go out. I wish I had that many girls chasing after me."

"Not sure if Jinx would like that," Vic arched an eyebrow.

"Pfft," Wally dismissed him. "Jinx and I are off again. She found herself some bad influence boyfriend."

"I'm sure she'll come back to you. She always does," Roy added as he glimpsed at Gar. "I'm pretty sure they just get that casual hook-up vibe from Gar, probably why they're always swooning."

Vic elbowed him with a killer glare.

"Sorry, that was cold," Roy admitted and sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

"Don't worry about it," Garfield smiled and took a drink of his coke. "It's probably true. At least you guys get the committed ones."

"Don't say that, Gar. There's a girl out there for you. Just you wait," Vic patted his back.

Garfield sighed and stood up. "I'm heading to the restroom," he announced before walking away, but not before hearing a not so subtle, "Way to go Harper. That was messed up."

Admittedly, Garfield wasn't walking away just because of that. He just wasn't feeling up for a guy talk.

"Excuse me. Where's the restroom?" he asked the woman at the counter.

"Down to your left," she pointed to the hallway, eyes not glancing up from her notebook.

Garfield followed her directions, and when he spotted the door to the guy's restroom in front of the girl's, his eyes brightened. He just needed a little splash on the face, just to wake him up from his daze.

Faith is a funny concept, but at the moment, it derived no form of amusement for Garfield. He would've taken anything, running into a biker dude, one of his casual one night stand partners, even that one elderly lady he had accidentally stolen a seat from in the bus and had been too sheepish to stand up because it'd be awkward to offer it after minutes of sitting there like a dumbass,  _anything_. However, what he didn't want to deal with was running into the current problematic person in his life.

"Raven," he stammered as she ran into him after exiting the girl's room.

She gaped at him, probably as unsure about the situation as he was. They had two options here, completely ignore each other and pretend it never happened or actually talk things through.

Considering Garfield had already acknowledged her, he had kind of already unintentionally chosen the latter.

"Gar," she nodded.

"What a coincidence," he muttered, standing there awkwardly on his heels holding his hands like a grounded child, avoiding her hypnotizing indigo eyes at all cost as if she were Medusa herself.

"What a coincidence indeed," she didn't take her eyes off of him.

Faith—Garfield had never been sure if he believed in it, but at the moment, life was doing nothing but convincing him that for whatever reason, Raven was meant to be in his life. Or perhaps it was just another messed up butterfly effect moment.

But he doubted that.

I mean, how many coincidences does it take for the butterfly effect to turn into destiny itself?


End file.
